Child Safety Complaints and Concerns Policy

1. Purpose

This policy sets out how Brizzy Jumping Castles receives, records, responds to and reports complaints, concerns and allegations relating to the safety, wellbeing or harm of a child or a vulnerable adult. It applies to concerns about the conduct of a worker, about another child, about a customer or member of the public, or about our own practices, equipment or decisions.

It is written to meet Standard 6 of the Queensland Child Safe Standards under the Child Safe Organisations Act 2024 (Qld), which requires processes for responding to complaints and concerns to be child-focused.

2. Scope

This policy covers a complaint or concern raised by anyone: a child or young person, a parent, carer or family member, a worker, a customer, a school or education body, another organisation, or a member of the public. It covers concerns raised in person, by phone, by message, by email, through a school, or anonymously.

It applies to concerns about:

• Harm or suspected harm to a child, of any kind, whether or not it occurred in connection with our work
• The conduct of a worker towards a child, including a breach of the Child Safe Code of Conduct at Annex A of POL-050 Child Protection and Safeguarding Policy
• The safety or wellbeing of a vulnerable adult in connection with our services
• The safety of our equipment, set-up, supervision arrangements or site practices as they affect children
• The way a previous complaint was handled
• Discrimination, racism or exclusion affecting a child, including conduct affecting the cultural safety of an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander child

A complaint about price, booking, availability or damage that has no child safety element is handled under our ordinary customer complaints process, not this policy. If any doubt exists, the complaint is handled under this policy.

3. Principles

4. How to raise a concern

Anyone can raise a concern about a child's safety or wellbeing with us, directly and without going through anyone else.

• You can tell any of our crew. They have to pass it on to our boss the same day, and they have to take you seriously.
• You can tell a teacher, your parent or carer, or any adult you trust, and ask them to tell us.
• You can call Jason on 1300 310 820, or email jason@brisbanejumpingcastles.com.
• You can ask someone to sit with you while you tell us. You can bring anyone you want.
• You will not get in trouble for telling us, even if you are not sure, and even if you got something wrong.
• We will tell you what we are doing about it, in a way you understand, and we will ask you what would help you feel safe.
• There is one thing we cannot do. We cannot keep it a secret if you or another child is not safe. We will have to tell someone whose job it is to help, and we will tell you when we do it.

You can also call Kids Helpline on 1800 55 1800, any time, day or night. It is free and you can talk to them about anything.

5. What happens when a concern is raised

5.1 Stage 1: Immediate safety, same day

1. If a child is in immediate danger, call 000.
2. Make the child safe. Separate the child from the person or situation the concern is about. A worker who is the subject of a concern is stood down from all child-related work immediately, as a neutral protective step and not as a finding against them.
3. The worker who received the concern notifies the Director immediately, and in any case the same day.
4. The worker writes down what was said, in the words used, with the date, time, place and who was present, and gives it to the Director. No interpretation is added.

5.2 Stage 2: Record and report, within 24 hours

1. The Director records the concern in the Child Safety Complaints Register.
2. The Director reports to the appropriate external authority under section 6. This is not delayed while we form a view on whether the concern is substantiated.
3. Where the concern arises at or involves a school, early childhood service or church site, the Director notifies the principal or nominated contact and the relevant education body in parallel.
4. Where a worker's conduct is involved, the Director assesses whether a report to Blue Card Services is required.

5.3 Stage 3: Acknowledge and support, within 2 business days

1. The Director acknowledges the complaint to the person who raised it, in writing where contact details are known, and explains what will happen next and roughly how long it will take.
2. The child and their family are offered support, and are told about external supports including Kids Helpline, 1800RESPECT and the school's counselling services.
3. Where the person raising the concern wants a support person, an interpreter, or a culturally appropriate contact, we arrange it.

5.4 Stage 4: Resolve, normally within 20 business days

1. Where police or the child protection authority are involved, we do not investigate. We cooperate fully, provide records on request, and take no step that could interfere with their process.
2. Where the matter is ours to deal with, (a Code of Conduct breach, a practice or equipment issue), the Director gathers the facts, considers the child's view, and decides on the action to be taken.
3. The Director tells the person who raised the concern what the outcome is and what has changed, in plain language, and in a form the child can understand where the complainant is a child.
4. If the matter will take longer than 20 business days, the Director tells the complainant why, and gives an expected timeframe. Updates are provided at least every 20 business days thereafter.
5. Action taken is recorded, together with the change made to prevent recurrence.

6. External reporting

We report to the relevant authority whether or not the law requires us to, and we cooperate with any authority that has responsibility to investigate.

7. Roles and responsibilities

8. Records and the complaints register

The Director maintains a Child Safety Complaints Register recording, for each matter: a reference number, the date received, how it was received, who raised it, a summary of the concern, immediate action taken, external reports made and their dates, the outcome, the date the complainant was informed, and any change made to our practice as a result.

Records are held securely, separately from personnel and customer files, with access restricted to the Director. They are retained for at least seven years after the last action, and for a child-related matter for at least seven years after the child turns 25. Records are produced to police, the child protection authority, Blue Card Services, the QFCC, or a school or education body on request.

9. Privacy and confidentiality

Personal information is collected and handled under the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and, where we handle information on behalf of a Queensland education body, the Information Privacy Act 2009 (Qld). Information about a complaint is disclosed only to those who need it to keep a child safe, to meet a legal obligation, or to comply with a lawful request. A person who is the subject of a complaint is told of the substance of the concern at the point that does not compromise an investigation, and is treated fairly.

10. Learning from complaints

The Director reviews the Child Safety Complaints Register at least annually, and after any serious matter, to identify patterns, recurring risks and weaknesses in our practice, and to make changes. The review considers whether concerns are being raised at all, since an absence of complaints is more often a sign that people do not feel able to speak up than a sign that nothing is wrong.

Findings are fed into POL-050 Child Protection and Safeguarding Policy, RA-005 Child and Youth Risk Management Plan and worker training. Changes made in response to a complaint are recorded and communicated to workers, and where appropriate to the child, family or school that raised it.

11. If you are not satisfied with our response

If you are not satisfied with how we have handled a concern, tell the Director and ask for it to be reviewed. You can also take it outside the business at any time, without telling us first:

• Queensland Police Service: 131 444, or 000 in an emergency
• Child protection reports, Queensland: 1800 177 135
• Queensland Family and Child Commission: (07) 3900 6000
• Blue Card Services: 1800 113 611
• The school, diocese or education body where the concern arose
• Office of the Australian Information Commissioner, for a privacy complaint: 1300 363 992

12. Related documents

• POL-050 Child Protection and Safeguarding Policy, including Annex A Child Safe Code of Conduct
• POL-052 Statement of Commitment to Child Safety
• RA-005 Child and Youth Risk Management Plan
• Child Safety Complaints Register
• Incident and Near Miss Register

13. Revision history